It’s been said in the Western media that Kenenisa Bekele is camera shy; a reference to his quiet demeanor and reserved, low tone. But whatever parts of this may be true, they are as much a reflection of the general Ethiopian tendency to be shy and reserved at first contact, as they are of the man himself. You have to dig to find out more to engage most Ethiopians. So it is with this quiet, unassuming young man who like will take his time to get to know you before feeling comfortable enough to let his true personality shine through.
At the age of 27, he has achieved almost anything he could ever want to on the athletic field. Like his predecessor Haile, what’s left perhaps is to conquer the greater distance of the marathon at some point in his life although it does not seem to be a burning issue for him at the moment. Exactly what really drives Kenenisa these days was as much a surprise to us as it will no doubt be to many readers. The clues to his passion can be found in the new hotel he is building in Addis Ababa as well as two others he already operates outside the capital. Behind these fruits of his efforts, lies an intense discomfort with the largely negative way he feels Ethiopia is perceived internationally and a burning desire to do something about it.
As well travelled as he is, there are probably few other Ethiopians who have had the opportunity to experience the range of stereotypes of drought, famine and war, through which foreigners understand Ethiopa. Kenenisa believes they are a function of developed world media which seems to have interest mostly in the bad news that emanates out of Ethiopia (and not enough in the tremendous variety of shades that make up the tapestry of this country’s true image. While he does not deny the presence of problems, he points out that if all we were to hear about any given country was its problems, then our image of that country would be so incomplete, it would almost be better to refer to it as inaccurate.
The extent of Kenenisa’s discomfort with such perceptions is hard to understate. This despite the fact that as a world class athletic phenomenon, he and his colleagues (including Tirunesh Dibaba, Haile Gebreselassie and others) have certainly given media coverage of Ethiopia at least a bit of a break from the bad news vicious cycle. This is a big part of why he’s engaging in a number of ventures in the hospitality industry beginning with 2 hotels he already operates in Assela and Bekoji, close to where he was born and grew up, developing the talents that catapulted him to international fame.
The Kenenisa Bekele Grand Hotel
The newest and most visible of his current projects is undoubtedly the hotel he is building in the Bole Medhanealem area of Addis. Although he and his engineer modestly refer to it as a 4 star, it will most probably meet and exceed requirements for being classified as a 5 star. In terms of sheer size, a planned athletic and recreational center in Sululta may eclipse even the hotel but for now, he is focused on making sure this one will be all set for an expected opening within a year’s time. Designed by Italian architect Carlo Stronati to have both short stay rooms and longer stay apartments, the hotel will feature Kenenisa’s persona in a variety of ways including displays of his trophies and other mementos. Perhaps not a moment too soon for his sporting accomplishments have long outgrown his own trophy cases at home with piles of medals sitting inside many of them. Sited as it is mere minutes away from Bole Airport, it can be expected to gain some of the business from transit passengers that appears to be a sizable driver of the growing demand for quality rooms in the capital. But Kenenisa also has other plans that he believes will attract additional visitors to Ethiopia that he hopes will continue working towards changing the prevailing world perception of the country.
Of course Kenenisa is not the only famous athlete moving into the hospitality sector. Haile Gebreselassie’s hotel in Awassa looks like it will be opening in the first quarter of 2010 and represents a major investment in the city of 125,000. Given the heavy capital requirements of such projects and the dearth of project financing in the Ethiopian financial system, it is welcome news indeed that our athletes are taking the responsibility of launching these projects and backing them with their own money.
Sululta Project To Drive Sports Tourism
It should come as no surprise that Kenenisa knows a LOT of international athletes. Apparently, more than a few have expressed an interest in coming to train in Ethiopia to experience the high altitude that has proved advantageous to the running prowess of Ethiopian athletes. However, the lack of infrastructure to support such ‘tourists’ has prevented any significant uptake in the past. Kenenisa’s athletic and recreational project in Sululta could change all that. Expected to house a world class racing track, accommodations and recreational facilities, it isn’t targeted just at foreigners but also at aspiring athletes from Addis (who crowd the capital’s streets from dawn to dusk) to be able to exercise in a better environment.
The 590,000 square meter site could likely end up being the biggest sports and recreational complex in the country when it is completed. Along with the sports facilities will be an athlete’s village, restaurants, lodges, a full suite of courts (basketball, tennis, volleyball) and picnic areas. It may be the perfect complement to the hotel in Addis in Kenenisa’s quest of developing the opportunity he sees in sports tourism for Ethiopia.
Kenenisa At Home
It wasn’t the easiest thing for us to convince Kenenisa to show us his home. Although it isn’t a mega mansion in the same vein that some of the more elite homes in Addis are, it is a great place for him to unwind with his wife Danawit and their 2 children who were unfortunately too shy to come out and meet us. Fatherhood has brought a different element into his life and he speaks wistfully of how much he misses them on his now too frequent trips abroad for international competitions. Like other runners, he mentions that his own parents did not approve of his single minded focus on the racetrack in his younger days although they are of course extremely proud of his accomplishments today. Something we definitely didn’t know about him is that he is an aspiring musician, playing a few notes on the keyboard in his living room to demonstrate what is clearly a hobby he fondly holds to at home.
As you might well expect, his house does include a well equipped gym in which he spends countless hours running on a treadmill although it is of course by no means the only place he trains in. Nearby is a room with a large, jetted tub and a massage table where Kenenisa and his younger brother, emerging star Tariku Bekele also spend a fair amount of time, healing their bodies from the stresses that long training sessions and competition places on them. The house itself is cozy but graceful and well appointed with beautiful wood paneling throughout, including the incredibly full trophy cases in the living room downstairs. Stuffed in there are trophies of almost every imaginable shape and size. On the mantle of the fireplace, just below the large portrait of Kenenisa and Danawit on their wedding day, sit the statuettes he won as Men’s Track and Field Athlete Of The Year in 2004 and 2005.
Hospitality starts at home and track star or not, Kenenisa (as well as Danawit) are gracious hosts in typical Ethiopian fashion insisting that we have refreshments and genuinely disappointed that we were not able to stay for dinner. Film star though she may be, Danawit also seems at first glance to be of the same shy and reserved nature as her husband. When the topic turns to how it feels for her to watch him participate in major international competitions, she can only laugh at the story of how she once somehow found herself sliding off the sofa and under a coffee table, overcome with the tense drama unfolding on the TV screen between Kenenisa and Bernard Lagat at the recent Berlin Sports.
Although we did not spend much time talking about athletics, we had to interject a question that the world at large is probably very eager to know the answer to; will there ever be a middle distance face off between Kenenisa and Usain Bolt? Alas, we can offer no more enlightenment on that particular topic for it was one he was decidedly reticent in discussing, saying only that enough had already been written on the subject.
As we walk out to the courtyard where several cars are parked, we can’t help but notice how un-flashy they generally seem to be. He explains that the Hyundai he mostly drives was a prize he won from one of his races as is another small Toyota nearby. Underneath a carport is a Toyota Land Cruiser which is the first car he bought several years ago and appears to be the only upscale vehicle he owns. Many of his friends have previously asked him why he insists on driving around town in a Hyundai when he could enjoy the luxuries of other cars costing much more. “I wouldn’t feel right about driving a car that costs millions when I know there is so much good I could do with the money instead. There is a great deal of poverty here and I would really feel the gap of that inequity. I would rather spend my money doing something about it.”
In the end, this causally uttered remark is indicative of our experience talking to the man who is unquestionably one of the greatest distance runners of all time, we are left with an undying impression not of the athletic prowess the whole world knows about but of a quiet and indomitable human spirit that transcends even his monumental achievements in sports.
Comments
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Kenenisa True Ambessa! written by Afriq , March 05, 2010
Kenenisa, God bless you. I was really touched by this piece, I wish our leaders were as wise and driven to improve poverty. Wonderful article! Kenenisa, keep up the good work, we are proud of you!
THIS GUY IS AMAZING written by NEB FOTO , May 03, 2010
The records this guy has broken and the times he runs these races are amazing. I used to run myself so i know how hard running is. Good luck to him and all the others that are following in his foot steps.
